
Rob Hughes
Freelance writer for Classic Rock since 2008, and sister title Prog since its inception in 2009. Regular contributor to Uncut magazine for over 20 years. Other clients include Word magazine, Record Collector, The Guardian, Sunday Times, The Telegraph and When Saturday Comes. Alongside Marc Riley, co-presenter of long-running A-Z Of David Bowie podcast. Also appears twice a week on Riley’s BBC6 radio show, rifling through old copies of the NME and Melody Maker in the Parallel Universe slot. Designed Aston Villa’s kit during a previous life as a sportswear designer. Geezer Butler told him he loved the all-black away strip.
Latest articles by Rob Hughes

Why The Velvet Underground hated The Doors
By Rob Hughes published
"How fabulous, in a bathtub in Paris!" - Lou Reed, upon hearing of the death of Doors frontman Jim Morrison

The Ry Cooder albums you should definitely own
By Rob Hughes published
Whether reshaping roots music or making emotive soundtracks, Ry Cooder’s albums have always reflected that X factor called class - and these are his beat

The Rick Rubin albums you should definitely own
By Rob Hughes last updated
The producer with the Midas touch, Rick Rubin's CV – from Slayer to Johnny Cash, from the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Tom Petty – includes some golden moments in rock's history

Chris Spedding: my stories of the Rolling Stones, the Sex Pistols, Roy Harper and more
By Rob Hughes published
Chris Spedding turned down the Rolling Stones, stood in for Jimmy Page, was the first man to record the Sex Pistols, and was the Womble with the Flying V. These are his stories

The Joni Mitchell albums you should definitely own
By Rob Hughes published
On her journey from coffee-house folkie to genre-juggling experimentalist, Joni Mitchell recorded some of the finest albums of her era

The Neil Young albums you should definitely own
By Rob Hughes published
There's a different Neil Young everywhere you look: melodic troubadour, electric warrior, garage rocker, grunge forefather, synth wrangler and more – and these are his best albums

The 10 best David Crosby songs
By Rob Hughes published
Ten of the best from the late and legendary singer-songwriter David Crosby, the man with the honeyed voice

Susan Tedeschi: "I’m hoping to do something with Harry Styles"
By Rob Hughes published
Releasing a sprawling album over four separate months was quite a bold move for the Tedeschi Trucks Band, but there may be bigger adventures ahead

Myrkur: Norse myths and the story behind the progressive folk of Folksange
By Rob Hughes published
Myrkur, aka Amalie Bruun, discusses Norse mythology and motherhood as the inspiration behind her third album, Folksange

Creedence Clearwater Revival and the long road to the Royal Albert Hall
By Rob Hughes published
For a time in the late 60s, Creedence Clearwater Revival were the hottest band in America, if not the world. John Fogerty, Stu Cook and Doug Clifford recall their rocket ride from outcasts to “outselling The Beatles"

Peter Buck on R.E.M: "No matter how good our last record was, it wasn’t really our time any more"
By Rob Hughes published
Former R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck on his old band, working with Luke Haines, and not having record labels tell him what to do

When Rainbowman met Gangsterman: The story of the gig that invented glam rock
By Rob Hughes published
The crowd at 1970’s Atomic Sunrise Festival in London wasn't much interested David Bowie’s new band Hype, with their lurex outfits and make-up, but one onlooker was: Marc Bolan

Taj Mahal: "All you’ve gotta do is step out of the boxes they try to put the blues in"
By Rob Hughes published
Taj Mahal headlined over Led Zeppelin and taught Keith Richards things he didn't know. The is his story: the story of a Rising Son

How The Cult made the "blues-rock-free zone" of Under The Midnight Sun
By Rob Hughes published
Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy talk about The Cult's new album Under The Midnight Sun, and their “simple vision to make guitar-oriented rock"

Eivor: from teenage TV star and avant-jazz queen to The Last Kingdom
By Rob Hughes published
We explore the prog credentials of Faroese artist Eivør Pálsdóttir, whose music career has encompassed avant-jazz, trip hop, chamber pop, throat singing and even impersonating Marilyn Monroe

The Roy Harper albums you should definitely own
By Rob Hughes published
Led Zeppelin wrote a song about him, Pink Floyd invited him to sing on another, but this is the very best of Roy Harper's own recorded work

Guns, drugs and Australia: the story of The Lemonheads' It's A Shame About Ray
By Rob Hughes published
It's A Shame About Ray turned Lemonheads frontman Evan Dando into alt.rock’s new god, but in typical rock’n’roll fashion, that’s when things started to go wrong

Timothy B. Schmit: no one wants to hear new music from the Eagles
By Rob Hughes published
Eagles vocalist/bassist Timothy B. Schmit on the Eagles and seventh solo album Day By Day, made with little help from his famous friends

The 50 greatest Pink Floyd songs ever
By Fraser Lewry, Rob Hughes, Jerry Ewing, Henry Yates, Hugh Fielder, Mark Blake, Daryl Easlea, Tim Batcup, Glenn Povey last updated
From underground clubs to sold-out stadiums, Pink Floyd's path through rock has been revolutionary and stunningly successful. Here are their 50 best songs

16 of the best psychedelic rock albums ever
By Rob Hughes, Malcolm Dome last updated
Take a trip through time and space with the ultimate mind-bending psychedelic rock albums

The story of Ministry's Jesus Built My Hotrod: "Gibby threw up, spit up some gibberish and left"
By Rob Hughes published
Finished off when a drunken Gibby Haynes staggered into the studio and babbled a load of nonsense, Ministry's Jesus Built My Hotrod became a big seller and a middle finger to the label

Judy Teen: the quasi-calypso pop classic that gave Cockney Rebel an unlikely hit
By Rob Hughes published
"She was very funny. And very naughty too. She taught me quite a lot, to be honest. She was very rude" - Steve Harley

The Faust Tapes: just as disorientating now as it ever was
By Rob Hughes published
A 2022 reissue for the cut-price 1973 classic from Hamburg renegades Faust. Pop it certainly ain’t
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